stoney

Comment Threads

• giskard03 commented on Video: Aerial View of Ares I-X Flight Test
  "Interesting that they chalk the main parachute failures up to 'Oh well, it was a test and we learned something'." I don't think anyone said "Oh well". They will obviously work on it. "Why didn't they use ball bearings and then blow a hatch so that all of the ballast fell out?" Your criticisms aren't well thought-out, and demonstrate that you don't understand how difficult test flights are. FYI, ballast doesn't just "fall out" when you're on a ballistic trajectory at 130,000 ft. What you're suggesting requires additional pyros (and you don't want pyros unless they're absolutely necessary, and ballast...

• dbooker commented on Video: Aerial View of Ares I-X Flight Test
  Your response isn't well thought out. They could have had a hopper with a funnel shape in the 5th segment and a hatch at the bottom internal to the booster core. Once the pilot chute stabilized the empty booster shell the hatch could have been blown and gravity would have done the rest as the booster was being slowed by the parachute. Very simple design with almost no moving parts. As Mr. Griffin likes to do, could have been designed on the back of a napkin. And if your worried about these falling into the sea what about the dummy...

• Mike Schriber commented on Video: Aerial View of Ares I-X Flight Test
  You're not really being serious with this ball bearing idea are you? It's ridiculous plan (sort of like Ares 1-X actually)....

• New Frontier commented on Video: Aerial View of Ares I-X Flight Test
  Phenomenal footage, particularly of the latter boost phase, one/two sep, and stage one descent. It certainly doesn't appear (to my tired old eyes, at least,) that recontact occurred, but MAN, the parachute shortcomings are very unnerving. If, by some chance, Ares I continues, I hope these are easy bugs to work out....

• giskard03 commented on Video: Aerial View of Ares I-X Flight Test
  Let me rephrase what you just suggested: You want to put a hatch that opens to the COMBUSTION CHAMBER of the booster... that opens with pyros... that's moronic. FYI, the combustion chamber you want to put a hatch on operates at about 900 psi and a few thousand degrees. You'd need to insulate the hatch, make sure it doesn't leak hot gases, and make it withstand around 900 psi (at least). Then you want to dump shot into the still-hot and smoldering core of the booster, much of which could stick to the hot insulation and residue still inside. That...